An experienced triathlete who was compassionate about the plight of sharks is feared to have been killed in an attack by the apex predator off the coast of California.

Erica Fox, 55, who helped found the Kelp Krawlers swimming group 20 years ago, disappeared from the waters off of Lovers Point Sunday afternoon as a witness reported seeing a shark with what appeared to be a human body in its mouth.

She had been swimming with her regular group that meets at Lovers Point every week, entering the water at around 11.30am on Sunday, before they swam west around Lovers Point and into Otter Cove, a member of the group told Monterey County Weekly.

But as usual, Fox was ahead of the others on the return trip to the beach when one club member, who exited the water early, noticed a shark breach about 100 yards off the point, according to The Mercury News. 

Meanwhile, a driver stopped at a nearby stop sign said he saw a shark breach the water with what appeared to be a human body in its mouth, the US Coast Guard said.

He then claimed he saw the shark submerge below the waterline.

The reports prompted the other swimmers to head back to shore, but when a member of the group took a count, they realized Fox was missing.

‘It started to click that everybody was back on shore but Erica,’ said Sharon Carey, who stayed close to the shore during the swim.

‘I just felt numb. I was hoping that maybe she got out of the water and then decided to walk back.’

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Erica Fox, 55, who helped found the Kelp Krawlers swimming group 20 years ago, is feared to have been killed in a shark attack off the coast of California over the weekend

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First responders from the US Coast Guard, Monterey Fire Department, Seaside Fire and CAL Fire then raced to the scene of Lovers Point when she was reported missing Sunday afternoon

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Crews used rescue boats, drones, a dive team and helicopters to search 84 square nautical miles to find Fox, before ultimately suspending the efforts Monday evening after 15 hours

First responders from the US Coast Guard, Monterey Fire Department, Seaside Fire and CAL Fire then raced to the scene to search for the missing swimmer.

They used rescue boats, drones, a dive team and helicopters to search 84 square nautical miles to find Fox, before ultimately suspending the efforts Monday evening after 15 hours, KSBW reports.

‘The Coast Guard extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends and loved ones affected by this tragic incident,’ Captain Jordan Beldueza, the commander of the Coast Guard Sector San Francisco, said at the time.

The news shocked those who knew Fox, with Kelp Krawlers member Sara Rubin saying ‘she is as experienced and strong of a swimmer as they come.’

Fox has competed in two half-Ironman competitions and participated in an annual triathlon for almost 20 years called Escape from Alcatraz, her father, James Fox told NBC News.

‘I’m in shock and I’m kind of number by all this because it was just out of the blue,’ he said.

‘Erica was doing something yesterday that she really loved,’ he continued. ‘Swimming was her forte. She just loved that.’

The grieving father went on to describe his daughter as kind, empathetic and disciplined.

‘Just an ideal person,’ he said. ‘I’m not saying that just because she’s my daughter, but that’s the way she was – just a wonderful, caring person.’

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The incident marked the third violent shark encounter at Lovers Point since June 2022, when a fellow swim club member was bitten and seriously injured

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Lovers Point falls inside Northern California’s infamous Red Triangle, one of the world’s most active great white shark zones

Kelp Krawlers member Lisa Jensen also said Fox was ‘an incredibly cheerful, bubbly, funny, joyful, kind human being’ who knew the risks of the ocean.

She had attended a ‘Sharktober’ seminar at Hopkins Marine Station, just north of Lovers Point, to learn more about the predators, and in 2013, she shared a photo on Facebook showing a shark swimming next to a scuba diver.

‘This is the most dangerous animal in the world and next to it [is] a shark swimming peacefully,’ the caption read.

Even after Steve Bruemmer, a member of the swimming group, survived a June 2022 shark attack with severe leg injuries, Fox defended the creatures.

She told news outlets at the time that she preferred the terms ‘incident’ or ‘bite’ over ‘shark attack.’

‘As soon as you dive in the water, you’re immediately in a foreign land,’ she told The Independent following the attack on Bruemmer and an ensuing attack on a paddleboarder and his dog, who were tossed from their board when a shark bit it from below. Fortunately neither was injured.

‘We are the ocean ecology’s humble guests,’ Fox added.

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Fox was described as ‘an incredibly cheerful, bubbly, funny, joyful, kind human being’ who knew the risks of the ocean

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In 2013, she shared this photo on Facebook showing a shark swimming next to a scuba diver, saying the diver was more dangerous than the shark

Following Bruemmer’s close call with a shark at Lovers Point – which falls inside Northern California’s infamous Red Triangle, one of the world’s most active great white shark zones – Jensen said she and other swimmers purchased ankle bands meant to deter the beasts.

‘We found out later that this particular species of shark is not one of the ones that gets deterred by the shark bands, but we chose to wear them anyway,’ she said as the group continued to peruse the shark-infested waters.

She said it is now up to individual members of the group to ‘make their own decisions about if and when they want to go back in.’

But Bruemmer – who has largely recovered from his 2022 shark encounter – said he thinks Fox’s death should mark a turning point.

‘I’m going to say it’s time,’ he said. ‘Erica was the founder of Kelp Krawlers and this should be the last swim at Lovers Point.’